Honda discover the cause of Aston Martin’s power‑unit problem

What looked like Aston Martin’s most productive day of preseason testing fell apart in seconds. Fernando Alonso had already logged 68 laps on a busy Thursday morning in Bahrain when a Honda power‑unit failure forced the team to shut the car down immediately. Every alarm went off inside the green garage, and the next day Lance Stroll managed only six laps.

With the season opener in Australia just around the corner, the situation felt alarming. But Honda believes it’s getting closer to a solution.

Honda identifies the cause

Ikuo Takeishi, head of Honda Racing Corporation’s competition department, explained what triggered Alonso’s sudden stoppage on the Sakhir circuit. Speaking to Motorsport Japan, he said: “Abnormal vibrations damaged the battery system, which was the main reason we stopped the car. We shut it down because it wasn’t safe to keep running—not because a failure was imminent, but because the situation was dangerous.”

The good news: Honda knows where the problem is coming from. Engineers in Sakura are now working urgently to fix it.

Inside Honda’s emergency response

Takeishi says the team is attacking the issue from multiple angles: “On the power‑unit side, we’re investigating the cause and working on countermeasures, while the chassis side is implementing its own fixes. We’re running the Sakura battery on a test bench with the monocoque mounted, applying different vibration scenarios and analyzing everything.”

But he admits the path forward isn’t simple.

A complex problem with no quick escape

According to Takeishi, the vibrations were severe enough to damage the battery, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the battery itself is the root cause. “It’s as if the battery were shaking inside the car. The area where it’s mounted vibrates. If this had been within expected limits, we would’ve made adjustments earlier.”

He adds that the issue likely involves multiple components interacting, not a single faulty part: “If the cause were something like the transmission or the engine, it would be much easier to address. But because several elements seem to be contributing to the vibration, we can’t be sure that fixing one piece will solve it. We can’t rule out the possibility that this takes time.”

Not exactly comforting words with the Australian Grand Prix just a week away.

Target: a fix before Suzuka

Despite the setback, Honda and Aston Martin are far from discouraged. Their partnership is just beginning, and Takeishi insists they’re “fully committed to solving this quickly.”

His timeline is clear:

• Reduce the vibration before the season starts
• Have the car fully competitive by the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka, the third race of the year

By then, Honda hopes the reliability issues will be behind them so they can finally focus on extracting performance from the new power unit—something Takeishi says they’re not ready to “talk about actively” yet.

For now, it’s one problem at a time.

Get closer to the game! Whether you like your soccer of the European variety or that on this side of the pond, our AS USA app has it all. Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more. Plus, stay updated on NFL, NBA and all other big sports stories as well as the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.

And there’s more: check out our TikTok and Instagram reels for bite-sized visual takes on all the biggest soccer news and insights.